Drawaoke: Sing, Scribble, Showdown!

♪ There's a great big round balloon that's floating gently to the sky—

♪ And a little dancing ribbon hangs below and sways to and fro.

—So, what exactly are you being made to draw?

You won't find out until the very end.

This whole way of playing — drawing from nothing but a song's instructions — comes from ekaki-uta, Japan's classic drawing songs.

■ We all heard the same song. So why do our drawings look nothing alike?

Try it yourself and you'll see: drawing from nothing but a sung phrase is surprisingly hard.

Everyone reads the lines their own way, so the finished drawings almost never look alike.

■ Can't draw? You'll fit right in

In a drawing song where you don't know the answer, getting it right on your first try would honestly be the strange part.

And yet, somehow, there are near misses — drawings that look almost, sort of, like the answer. That's where the fun is.

Play a few songs and you start piecing it together: "That phrase repeated — arms? Legs?" "A small part — an eye, maybe?" Before you know it, you're actually getting better.

It's less a test of drawing skill, and more of a riddle to solve.

■ The reveal is the best part

Coach Sketch's answer plays back alongside everyone's drawings, all animated at once.

They advance stroke by stroke in time with the song, so you can see exactly where each of you went wrong.

When it finally clicks, send a "Nice one!" — and when there's no way anyone could have known, hurl an "Ugh!" at the coach.

■ And then, the awards

During the reveal, vote "Nailed it" for the drawing that pulled it off — and "Chaos" for the one that makes you wonder how they possibly got there.

Collect "Nailed it" votes and you take home the Masterpiece; collect "Chaos" votes and you earn the one and only Chaos Award.

Great drawings and glorious accidents are both the stars here.

■ More than one way to play

Classic mode: everyone hears the same song and draws at the same time.

In Whatsit mode, the song never names what you're drawing — and once you're done, you have to guess what your own drawing was supposed to be.

In Guess-Off mode, one player is the guesser, reading everyone's drawings to work out the answer (the role rotates).

New modes will keep arriving in updates.

■ Two styles, two moods

A mellow Nursery style and a fast-paced Synth style.

A faster tempo makes the same song a tougher challenge.

More styles are planned for updates — and depending on the style, the same subject may even get brand-new lyrics.

■ Draw at your own pace

The default is Echo pacing: every sung line is followed by an instrumental break, so you can think it through as you draw.

Live pacing — non-stop, right on the beat — is for players who've found their groove.

■ Every song you meet joins your collection

Every draw-along song you play is added to your Draw-Along Collection, where you can practice it solo later.

Songs you haven't played yet get picked first during regular play, so keep on playing.

■ Drew something incredible? Share it

Drawings from your games are saved to your Album, replay and all.

You can export them as videos or GIFs — so when a truly unbelievable one is born, show it to everyone.

■ Streaming and video

Stream it, upload it, monetize it — go right ahead. No advance notice, no permission request needed.

Two things we ask:

- Include the game's name in your video title

- Put a link to the Steam store page in the description

For the full details, see "Streaming and reuse" in the game.